If only you know how bad your
finances is being hurt by not tapping into the hardwood charcoal
export goldmine just like some other Nigerians living abroad then you
would speedy consider doing the business.

Charcoal is the blackish
residue consisting of impure carbon obtained by removing water and
other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances.
Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood,
sugar, bone char, or other substances in the absence of oxygen (see
pyrolysis, char and biochar). The resulting soft, brittle,
lightweight, black, porous material resembles coal and is 85% to 98%
carbon with the remainder consisting of volatile chemicals and ash.

Types of Charcoal:

Commercial charcoal is found
in either lump, briquette, or extruded forms:

• Lump charcoal is made
directly from hardwood material and usually produces far less ash than
briquettes.

• Briquettes are made by
compressing charcoal, typically made from sawdust and other wood
by-products, with a binder and other additives. The binder is usually
starch. Some briquettes may also include brown coal (heat source),
mineral carbon (heat source), borax, sodium nitrate (ignition aid),
limestone (ash-whitening agent), raw sawdust (ignition aid), and other
additives like paraffin or petroleum solvents to aid in ignition.

• Extruded charcoal is made by
extruding either raw ground wood or carbonized wood into logs without
the use of a binder. The heat and pressure of the extruding process
hold the charcoal together. If the extrusion is made from raw wood
material, the extruded logs are then subsequently carbonized.

The characteristics of
charcoal products (lump, briquette, or extruded forms) vary widely
from product to product. Thus it is a common misconception to
stereotype any kind of charcoal, saying which burns hotter, etc.

Charcoal is sometimes used to
power commercial road vehicles—usually buses—in countries where oil is
scarce or completely unavailable. In the years immediately after the
Second World War, charcoal buses were in regular use in Japan and are
still used today in North Korea

Uses: An application of wood charcoal was as a
constituent of gunpowder. It was also used in metallurgical
operations as a reducing agent, but its application has been
diminished by the introduction of coke, anthracite smalls, etc. For
example, charcoal may be used to smelt a variety of metals from
aluminum to copper as it burns at the necessary temperature: 1,100 °C
(2,010 °F). [4] A limited quantity is made up into the form of drawing
crayons; but the greatest amount is used as a fuel, which burns hotter
and cleaner than wood. Charcoal is often used by blacksmiths, for
cooking, and for other industrial applications.

Cooking
fuel: Charcoal briquettes are widely
used for outdoor grilling and barbecue in backyards and on camping
trips. In many non-industrialized countries, charcoal is used for
everyday cooking by a large portion of the population. This is
potentially a serious health problem when used indoors since carbon
monoxide (CO) is a combustion product.

Historically, charcoal was
used in great quantities for smelting iron in bloomeries and later
blast furnaces and finery forges. This use was replaced by coke
during the Industrial Revolution. For this purpose, charcoal in
England was measured in dozens (or loads) consisting of 12 sacks or
shems or seams, each of 8 bushels.

Automotive fuel

In times of scarce petroleum,
automobiles and even buses have been converted to burn wood gas (gas
mixture containing primarily carbon monoxide) released by burning
charcoal or wood in a wood gas generator. In 1931 Tang Zhongming
developed an automobile powered by charcoal, and these cars were
popular in China until the 1950s. In occupied France during World War
II, wood and wood charcoal production for such vehicles (called
gazogènes) increased from pre-war figures of approximately fifty
thousand tons a year to almost half a million tons in 1943.

Purification/Filtration:
Charcoal may be activated to increase
its effectiveness as a filter. Activated charcoal readily adsorbs a
wide range of organic compounds dissolved or suspended in gases and
liquids. Charcoal is often used to filter water to remove bacteria
and undesired tastes. In certain industrial process, such as the
purification of sucrose from cane sugar, impurities cause an
undesirable color, which can be removed with activated charcoal. It
is also used to absorb odors and toxins in gasses, such as air. One
striking example is the use of charcoal to remove the smell of
maraijuana plants in small-scale residential settings. Charcoal
filters are also used in some types of gas masks. The medical use of
activated charcoal is mainly the adsorption of poisons, especially in
the case of suicide attempts in which the patient has ingested a large
amount of a drug. Activated charcoal is available without a
prescription, so it is used for a variety of health-related
applications. For example, it is often used to reduce discomfort (and
embarrassment) due to excessive gas in the digestive tract.

Animal charcoal or bone black
is the carbonaceous residue obtained by the dry distillation of
bones. It contains only about 10% carbon, the remainder being calcium
and magnesium phosphates (80%) and other inorganic material originally
present in the bones. It is generally manufactured from the residues
obtained in the glue and gelatin industries. Its decolorizing power
was applied in 1812 by Derosne to the clarification of the syrups
obtained in sugar refining; but its use in this direction has now
greatly diminished, owing to the introduction of more active and
easily managed reagents. It is still used to some extent in
laboratory practice. The decolorizing power is not permanent,
becoming lost after using for some time; it may be revived, however,
by washing and reheating. Wood charcoal also to some extent removes
coloring material from solutions, but animal charcoal is generally
more effective.

Art:
Charcoal is used in art for drawing,
making rough sketches in painting and is one of the possible media for
making a parsemage. It must usually be preserved by the application
of a fixative. Artists generally utilize charcoal in three forms:

• Vine charcoal is created by
burning sticks of wood (usually willow or linden/Tilia) into soft,
medium, and hard consistencies.

• Compressed charcoal charcoal
powder mixed with gum binder compressed into round or square sticks.
The amount of binder determines the hardness of the stick. Compressed
charcoal is used in charcoal pencils.

• Powdered charcoal is often
used to "tone" or cover large sections of a drawing surface. Drawing
over the toned areas will darken it further, but the artist can also
lighten (or completely erase) within the toned area to create lighter
tones.

Horticulture

One additional use of
charcoal rediscovered recently is in horticulture. Although American
gardeners have been using charcoal for a short while, research on
Terra preta soils in the Amazon has found the widespread use of
biochar by pre-Columbian natives to turn otherwise unproductive soil
into very rich soil. The technique may find modern application, both
to improve soils and as a means of carbon sequestration.

Medicine

Charcoal was consumed in the
past as dietary supplement for gastric problems in the form of
charcoal biscuits. Now it can be consumed in tablet, capsule or
powder form, for digestive benefits. Charcoal absorbs gases and
toxins to help heartburn, flatulence or indigestion

Smoking

Special charcoals are used in
the smoking of the Hookah. Lit coals are placed on top of foil, which
is placed over the bowl of tobacco, and through indirect heat "cook"
the tobacco to a temperature that produces smoke, but does not burn.

The investor can benefit from
these business by buying from Nigeria in bulk and re-packaging it in 2
KG ,5 KG depending on the agreement with the buyer. Interestlying the
investor can start with one container that takes between N500,000 to
N600,000 to process and can make 30%-40% return on investment.

Here are the charcoal
producer, you can call them-tell them you are from me, they sell a bag
of charcoal from 390 to N500 per bag, you can sell to local or foreign
buyers .

Do you know that some local
buyers sell charcoal at N1500per bag, you can sell to these local
sellers and make a lot of money

Do you know that you can make 100% profit if you
buy your charcoal from the farm and sell to the retailers; a bag of
charcoal (30 to 35kg bag) is being sold for N450 to N550 from the
farm, while the retailers sell to the final consumer at N1000 to
N1,5000 per bag. All you need to do is to buy the charcoal from the
farmers and bring it down to the major cities like Lagos, Abuja and
port Harcourt and sell to the retailers.

Charcoal Season: Charcoal has a seasonal
market, but the season differs from one country to another. For
instances in Belgium, UK, Holland, France, Germany and Denmark, the
Sales season is from May through August because that is their summer
time.The Europeans give out their orders from September to May of the
following year.

In countries like Kuwait, Israel and other Asian
countries, it is all-year round and order is placed from January
through December. However, there are some big time importers in Europe
who also order all year round.

Standard Requirement: There are certain standard
requirements to be met in charcoal exports; parameters like fix
carbon, Ash content, volatile matter, moisture content need to meet
buyer’s specification. Some of the buyers use their local agents to
inspect here when loading. Others sometimes request for presentation
of sample of the product before shipment

Packaging: Packaging of charcoal is
usually done to the specification of the buyer. Some want bulk
packaging, in which case, the charcoal is tipped into open high cube
containers while others prefer packaging into finished packs like 3kg,
5kg, 10kg and 15kg. Shipping is done through a reputable forwarding
company and Terms of Trade can either be by letter of credit or Cash
Against Document. The latter is however easier and less costly than
the former. Packaging in bulk into containers is easier for beginners
because capital investment is low.

Start up Capital: An initial investment of
N615, 000 will cover the cost of product sourcing and landing the
charcoal at the product. The money will be enough to acquire enough
charcoal that will fill a 40-feet high cube container, weighing 23
tonnes. Charcoal from the south west part of the country would always
provide required tonnes. But if the charcoal is sourced from Benue,
one would require 27 tonnes to fill a 40-foot container, unlike the
South West where only 23tonnes would fill a 40-foot container.The rate
of returns is high one can make between 170 and 185 euro per tonne-free
on board (FOB) using the Lagos port for a case example. Where
individuals cannot raise the initial capital, he can form cooperatives
and do the business.

Return on Investment: You can turn your
investment ten times within one year and profit in each trip is
between N250, 000 and N270, 000

Financial Breakdown: 850 bags will full a 40 feet
container. N20 per bag will be charged as processing fee. The laborers
that will help you lift the charcoal into the container will collect
N8,000 per container. You will also pay local Government due,
Association due at the tune of N5,000 per container.

Let us base this analysis on a 40 feet container
that can carry 850 bags

Total cost of the filled 23 Tones of charcoal
delivered to the port equal to N626,000

Currently the foreign buyers buy at 170 Euros

Therefore 170 Euros x 23 Tones is @ N195 per Euro

The total will equal to 170 x 23 x 195 = N762,450

To get the profit : N762 450 – N626,000 =
N136,450

(N136,450)Profit from a Container)

However if you follow the content of this article
by producing the charcoal yourself, you can make more money because
this financial projection is based on the position that you are buying
from the Charcoal producers.

An exporter should be able to exports 4
containers in a month which is N136,450 x 4 = N545,800 Profit in a
month.

The foreign buyers would make payment after
receiving the bill of lading, showing evidence of delivery to the
shipping line of his choice at the port in Apapa

How small investors can catch on this
opportunity: A small investors can actually make money either by
producing the charcoal and sell to exporters or source for the
charcoal from the bush and sell to the real exporters and earn a
commission or finders fee. A small investor can also produce this
charcoal and sell to local consumers

Opportunity for big Investors: You can act as an
exporter in Nigeria and also an importer in Europe, all you need to do
is to register a company in Europe, get a warehouse and start
packaging your charcoal in small bags of 2kg to 10 kg. You will make
over 70% profit .Some Europeans merchants import over 500 container
from Nigerians every month, and they package the charcoal in small
bags and make a gain of 10,000 Euros instead of 3,000 Euros.

Start an Home-base export business: Do you know
that when you are starting your home base exportation business, you
may not need to have a registered limited liability Company from CAC
(Co-operate Affairs Commission), you may not register with NEPC
(Nigerian Export Promotion Council).you may not have an office which
means that you may have to work from home, your presence may not be
required for this Business to go on while you make Millions in your
house or workplace.

Don't
miss this opportunity to get started on your dreams! Take the first
step towards making money and living the life you want. Existing small
business owners who want to expand into new markets can also benefit
from home based business export

.

Charcoal has been classified in the Dangerous
Cargo category. In the past, before the shipments, it goes in bulk
cargos. Now you can export in 40ft containers only.

Most
shipping companies will reject your charcoal as its may cash fire on
board hereby burning down the vessles. Your charcoal must pass the
self ignition test before some shipping coys load it.